Proverbs 23:1-3
The Voice
23 When sitting down to eat with a ruler,
take a moment to think about who you are with and what you are doing.
2 If you are the type who eats too much too fast,
do whatever is necessary to curb your enthusiasm for food.
3 Also, do not eye the ruler’s delicacies,
for the food may not be what it seems.
Proverbs 23:6-9
The Voice
6 Do not sit down and eat the bread of a tight-fisted fellow
or desire any of his delicacies,
7 For deep down he’s keeping track of the cost.
He may say, “Eat up! Drink your fill!”
but he does not mean a word of it.
8 You’ll be sick and lose what little you did eat,
and you’ll waste your breath carrying on a pleasant conversation.
9 Do not waste your wisdom on a fool,
for he doesn’t care for anything you have to say.
Proverbs 26:6
The Voice
6 Like someone who cuts off his feet or drinks to his ruin,
so is the one who uses a fool to pass on his message.
Proverbs 26:10
The Voice
10 Like an archer who shoots at random and injures everyone,
so is a person who hires a fool or someone off the street.[a]
Footnotes
- 26:10 Meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
Proverbs 26:24-28
The Voice
24 One who hates may camouflage it beneath pleasant words,
but deep inside him, treachery still rages;
25 Don’t believe him when he speaks kindly
because his heart is completely ruled by evil.[a]
26 And though he covers his hatred with cleverness,
his wicked ways will be publicly exposed.
27 The one who digs a trap for another will fall into it,
and the one who starts rolling a stone will have it roll back over him.
28 Liars take no pity on those they crush with their lies,
and flattery spoils everyone it touches.
Footnotes
- 26:25 Literally, “seven detestable evils”
Proverbs 27:6
The Voice
6 Wounds inflicted by the correction of a friend prove he is faithful;
the abundant kisses of an enemy show his lies.
Proverbs 29:5
The Voice
5 The one who flatters his friend
is laying a trap that will catch his friend’s feet.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
